Hi Katie:
The answer to your question depends upon how active your starter is
and how much you feed it.
You are definitely doing the right thing by "waking" your starter up.
Three feedings on the day before baking may seem like too many to
some, but I think it guarantees the best success.
How much are you feeding each time? The flour and water you add
should be an order of magnitude bigger than the starter. Many people
make the mistake of underfeeding their starter, which leaves too
little food for the hungry yeasties.
Now, watch your starter. Immediately after feeding, it is dormant.
Then the yeasties begin to feed and reproduce, and it begins to grow,
often achieving a domed surface. When the yeast have used up their
nourishment, the dome will begin to fall. If you wait longer, the
starter will begin to small sour and become much gooier than when you started.
The ideal time to add starter to your dough to achieve maximum volume
is on the uphill side near the peak of activity, before the decline
begins. That's also the ideal time to feed. If you use it too early,
there aren't nearly as many active yeasties in your starter as there
will be later. If you use it too late, they begin to perish in all
the alcohol and CO2 they have produced.
I have learned to use a stiffer starter because the ideal window for
its use is longer than it is for a wetter starter. It takes longer to
get started, longer to reach peak, and longer to decline. Picture a
bell curve: a wet starter has steep inclines, a stiffer starter has
shallower curves. (Apologies to Daniel Wing, who taught me this stuff.)
Good Luck!
Bill